Show third o a pedal series o articles excerpted from the new book "The Life Extension Foundation Guide to Better Health" by Dr Harry Johnson Copyright © 1959 by Life Extension FounInc Englewood Cliffs NJ) dation Inc Published by Prentice-Ha- ll - & the (Tfiu IIbOOuO ©f by HARRY JOHNSON MD President Life Extension Foundation t r " people are abnormally conscious of their hearts these Too many The best thing you can do is live and forget about the fact that you have a heart It will go on beating for the heart is the strongest and toughest organ in your body A muscle about the size of a man's fist it beats an average of 70 to 80 times a minute under normal conditions During emergencies it can readily step up its rate to 130 or more beats per minute indicating a tremendous reserve capacity and power unequalled by pump any man-mathe Among many commonly held fallacies about the heart the one that seems to cause the greatest amount of fear is the belief that a heart attack spells imminent doom or invalidism The truth is a far more heartening story There are three main categories of heart disease (1) congenital (2) rheumatic and (3) arteriosclerotic Rheumatic heart disease is more common and usually develops between the ages of 5 and IS as a result of rheumatic fever or St Vitus dance The type of heart disease that concerns most people is arteriosclerotic Between the ages of 45 to 64 arteriosclerotic heart disease accounts for about four-fiftof the total heart-disea- se deaths among men and nearly of the deaths among women As we grow older the arteries throughout the body become harder and lose their elasticity thereby offering greater resistance to the circulation of blood A form of arteriosclerosis called atherosclerosis produces the same results by roughening and thickening the lining of the artery Let's examine the heart-disea- se problem by answering the most commonly asked questions: " de hs two-thir- ds Q 14 A There are many theories but little proof Some authorities put the blame on smoking others on stress still others on overweight or heredity The generally accepted view today is that a heart attack may result from arteriosclerosis which may be accelerated by unintelligent living— inadequate sleep poor diet lack of exercise and too much smoking with perhaps a little extra push from hereditary and stress factors f Q IDhth :i': f'i 'ktii aJUl nth: IkiJUl 'Hi(iihirn What causes a heart attack? 1101 it wHmtiih What are the symptoms of a heart attack? A Severe pain in the chest and sudden shortness of breath The pain may be a dull sensation as if something is squeezing your chest together or it may be quite sharp radiating out to one or both arms Pain or constrictions are sometimes accom- -' panied by a feeling of nausea as well as by general weakness and sweating Q A What should you do when you think you're having an attack? There are a number of other organic and functional disruptions which can cause symptoms (Continued on page 16) Family Weekly November 22 1959 |